Building Community

Our core belief is that young women of color and their families have the experiences, analysis and strength to make change by and for their communities. Our leadership development is centered around building young women who can represent their issues most effectively. We strive to build community among women of color in Albuquerque and beyond to identify issues and create positive change.

Circle of Strength

Open to self-identified young women of color 13-19

Our teenage organizing circle, Circle of Strength (COS), meets every week around 4 issue areas: campaign/change making, skills building and leadership, political education, and arts and expression. Through these areas we encourage the youth to find solidarity in their peers and YWU, participate in our events and campaigns and engage in YWU’s organizational strategy and decision making processes.

Las Pláticas

Open to self-identified women of color 18 and over

YWU began hosting Panocha Pláticas in 2008. In 2018, YWU revised the name to Las Pláticas in order to better reflect and honor a broader range of bodies. Las Pláticas are a safe space for women of color to come together to share and discuss sex, sexuality, women’s empowerment, sisterhood, and our bodies. Open to all self-identified women of color and native women including queer and trans* folks ages 18-100!

Each Plática is held at a different person’s house, where we gather and eat together. Discussion topics range from plática to plática. In the past we have had discussions on masturbation, moon cycles, strengthening sisterhood, and more.

We aim to build Las Pláticas as confidential spaces for both healing, learning, and fun. Pláticas are open to people of all sexual orientations.

We are thankful for the group of women in California who passed us the Plática tradition.